Strictly Rock

  • Home
  • Bands
  • Videos
  • Store
  • Events
  • Unsigned Bands
  • Blog
  • Contact

The Scorpions

May 15, 2014 by strictlyrock Leave a Comment

Click on the image to buy this poster

Born in Germany on August 31, 1948, Rudolph Schenker grew to found Scorpions in 1965 at the ripe old age of 17. Playing rhythm guitar, Schenker teamed up with his brother Michael, vocalist Klaus Meine, bassist Lothar Heimberg, and drummer Wolfgang Dziony. Together, Scorpions released their debut album, Lonesome Crow, in 1972. After touring as UFO’s opening act, Michael Schenker left Scorpions to play instead for UFO. His replacement, Uli Roth, stayed long enough to help the band complete their tour, but chose to remain with his group, Dawn Road, rather than join Scorpions permanently. Determined to continue playing alongside Roth, Rudolph Schenker and Klause Meine joined Dawn Road, who soon adopted the Scorpions name and released the band’s second album, Fly to the Rainbow, in 1974. The band’s third release, In Trance (1975), established their hard rock sound and helped to develop a strong fan base.

Click on the image to buy this T-shirt

Their rise to fame came with the 1976 release of Virgin Killer. The saying “any press is good press” proved true after the band faced harsh criticism for their album cover, depicting a naked prepubescent girl. As covers were banned and altered worldwide, heads began to turn, and critics soon realized that behind the eyebrow-raising cover lay true musical talent. The album received positive reviews, but still no radio hits. Similarly, their album Taken by Force (1978) was released with more promotion efforts on the part of RCA records, but the feature of the album’s single on promotional albums still did not provide the band with the popularity they soon came to know.

Instead, it was with the release of Lovedrive in 1979 that the band truly gained momentum, where songs such as “Loving You Sunday Morning,” “Always Somewhere,” “Holiday” and “Coast to Coast” helped the album climb to #55 on the US charts. With the release of Lovedrive, there was no turning back. Their release of Animal Magnetism (1980) with hits such as “The Zoo” and “Make it Real,” and Blackout (1981) featuring the famous “No One Like You,” paved the way for the group’s crowning glory. Love at First Sting was released in 1984, which featured what is arguably their most well-known song, “Rock You Like a Hurricane” and helped the band climb to #14 in the US.

Click on the image to buy this T-shirt

Following the release of several other albums (though none as acclaimed at Love at First Sting), the group was invited to Russia in 1990 as guest performers for a complete performance of Roger Waters’ The Wall (Scorpions played both versions of “In the Flesh”). In 1993 the group released Face the Heat, which featured a more definitive metal sound, which gained them new fans, but disappointed others who preferred the group’s delicate balance of hard rock and ballads. In response, their 1996 release Pure Instinct featured more ballads than metal. After the 1999 album Eye II Eye, the group tried something new by collaborating with the Berlin Philharmonic in their 2000 release of Moment of Glory… unfortunately, it came out shortly after Metallica’s acclaimed S&M collaboration with the San Francisco Symphony, leading some to believe that Moment of Glory was little more than a copycat album (however Scorpions had been approached by the Berlin Philharmonic back in 1995, so the debate as to who had the idea first continues).

Click on the image to buy this print

Scorpions have continued to perform in multiple world tours, released DVD footage of their shows, and have had songs appear on two different Guitar Hero games (namely, Rock the 80’s which featured “No One Like You” and Guitar Hero 3 which included “Rock You Like a Hurricane”). Their ability to utilize popular technology has helped keep their music relevant for newer generations of fans, and helped prepare listeners for Humanity, Hour I (2007), which featured more experimental sounds and lyrics than previous albums, and debuted at #63 in the US. With more than 14 previous band mates under their belt, Scorpions’ current lineup includes Rudolph Schenker, Kalus Meine, Matthias Jabs, Pawel Maciwoda and James Kottak. In 2009, the group set to work on Sting in the Tail, which was released in March 2010, and which Scorpions have confirmed to be their final album. On April 6, 2010, the band added their handprints to Hollywood’s Rock Walk, a due honor for a group that has held strong for over 40 years to ultimately release 17 studio albums—an achievement few bands can boast.

Filed Under: Rock Bands

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Cart

T-shirts

View all Products in this Category
View more T-Shirts

100 Greatest Rock & Roll Bands

  1. The Beatles
  2. The Rolling Stones
  3. Led Zeppelin
  4. Jimi Hendrix
  5. Elvis Presley
  6. The Who
  7. U2
  8. Pink Floyd
  9. The Doors
  10. The Police
  11. Elton John
  12. Metallica
  13. AC/DC
  14. Van Halen
  15. Nirvana
  16. Guns N' Roses
  17. Santana
  18. The Allman Brothers Band
  19. Bon Jovi
  20. David Bowie
  21. Grateful Dead
  22. Rush
  23. Yes
  24. Black Sabbath
  25. Bob Dylan
  26. James Brown
  27. The Beach Boys
  28. Eric Clapton
  29. Fleetwood Mac
  30. The Eagles
  31. Bob Marley
  32. Van Morrison
  33. Bruce Springsteen
  34. The Clash
  35. Queen
  36. Janis Joplin
  37. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
  38. R.E.M.
  39. The Kinks
  40. Steely Dan
  41. Steve Miller Band
  42. Jethro Tull
  43. Tool
  44. The Scorpions
  45. Coldplay
  46. Stone Temple Pilots
  47. Rod Stewart
  48. Marilyn Manson
  49. Creedence Clearwater Revival
  50. KISS
  51. The Pretenders
  52. Green Day
  53. Aerosmith
  54. Tina Turner
  55. Pearl Jam
  56. Ted Nugent
  57. Pantera
  58. Motörhead
  59. Judas Priest
  60. ZZ Top
  61. Megadeth
  62. Motley Crue
  63. Alice Cooper
  64. Def Leppard
  65. Iron Maiden
  66. Billy Idol
  67. Journey
  68. Anthrax
  69. Rage Against the Machine
  70. Blue Oyster Cult
  71. Alice in Chains
  72. Genesis
  73. Red Hot Chili Peppers
  74. Chuck Berry
  75. Buddy Holly
  76. Little Richard
  77. Elvis Costello
  78. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
  79. Sex Pistols
  80. Cream
  81. Frank Zappa
  82. Talking Heads
  83. Stevie Ray Vaughan
  84. Billy Joel
  85. The Band
  86. Ramones
  87. Lynyrd Skynyrd
  88. Jerry Lee Lewis
  89. Doobie Brothers
  90. Foo Fighters
  91. The Cure
  92. Soundgarden
  93. Iggy Pop
  94. Peter Gabriel
  95. The Byrds
  96. Traffic
  97. Deep Purple
  98. Blondie
  99. Velvet Underground
  100. Heart

Home | Bands | Videos | Store | Events | Unsigned Bands | Blog | Contact

Copyright © 2023 · strictlyrock.com

Copyright © 2023 · Website Maintenance Services